A Touching Story
by SophieDevereauxtoo
Summary: Alex forgot about Parker's issues. Can she make it up to her?


Alex:

I come into the apartment quietly. Still, I'm sure Parker hears me. She notices everything. It would be impossible to sneak up on her even if I wanted to.

Parker is sitting in front of her drafting table. She's got a set of blueprints laid out in front of her. The drafting table is new. She used to keep it in her thief place. Over the last months, she's been slowly letting go of her place. She still keeps it. I think it's a bit like a safety blanket for her but she's needing it less and less. Moving the table was a big step for her, one that tells me that she's finally relaxing, becoming accustomed to living with another person. It tells me that she's here to stay.

I walk, almost silently, to stand behind her. I gently put my hands on her shoulders. She jumps like she's startled, pulling away from my hands. It's been so long that she's let me touch her that I have forgotten about her issues. I put my hand on her arm to soothe her. She pulls away again. "Fuck Parker…I'm sorry."

Parker:

I've been looking at these blueprints all afternoon. They are from a small museum here in New York called the Cloisters. The museum is small but the security is quite sophisticated. The pieces I want are not small and that makes things even more difficult. The pieces are a set of 7 tapestries, probably woven in the 16th century in Brussels, they depict a common medieval theme, The Hunt for the Unicorn. The story is that they were commissioned by Anne of Brittany to celebrate her marriage to Louis XII. They were held in a private collection until they were stolen during the French Revolution. They were later bought by JD Rockefeller for $1,000,000 and willed to the museum after his death. They've been recently restored and now all 7 hang together. I've been wanting to lay my hands on them for a long time. If I can get all of the pieces out together, I can sell them for a pretty penny. But first I need to figure out this alarm system.

I'm concentrating on my work, trying to trace the alarm back to one point that I can easily access. It's very complicated and I am getting more than a little frustrated. I hear Alex come in but I am in the middle of tracing some lines and I can't look up to say HI. I hear her come up behind me but I still jump when she touches me.

I hate it when I do that. I like it when Alex touches me but there are times I can't help it. Touches feel funny sometimes, even from Alex. I try to hide it. I don't want to hurt her feelings. Or make her think I don't like her any more. I'm worried now. I want to explain. She touches my arm and I flinch again. I think she must hate me now. She's never going to want to touch me again. I can't look at her. I don't want her to see me cry. I have to go. She tries to say something but I can't hear her. I don't want to hear her.

Alex:

Parker won't look at me. I want to apologize. I want to tell her that I understand. She was working hard. I shouldn't have bothered her. I shouldn't have touched her without warning. I just love her so much. I love to touch her. I love it when she touches me. She gets up to leave. I want to stop her. I want to tell her it's OK. I watch her run out of the room. I tell her I'm sorry. She doesn't stop. I don't follow her.

I stand in place for what seems like an hour. Parker ran towards the bedroom. I know where she must be. We've talked about her not running but I know things are often overwhelming. I know when she tries to hide it. I feel her jump when I touch her sometimes. She usually settles down. I keep hoping she'll get over it. I know she tries. I want to go find her and tell her it's OK. I go to the bedroom but she's not there. The door to the balcony is open. Parker isn't there either. I don't need to look over the side of the building. I know where she is.

I consider talking to her from the balcony but I think this situation may call for a grander gesture. I want to show her I can understand. I want her to know that, whatever she's thinking, it's not that bad. I want her to know that I love her enough to work through this.

I go back into the bedroom without saying a word to her. I duck into her closet where she keeps her rigs. I pick out one that I am pretty sure she made for me. She's been trying to teach me to rappel instead of just closing my eyes and hoping I don't hit the ground too hard. I grab a rope and start working it through the rigging like she showed me.

Back out on the balcony, I tie into one of the anchors Parker has bolted to the balcony and climb up onto the rail. I say a silent prayer that I have myself tied into the anchor right and have threaded the belaying device properly. I grab the rope below me and slowly lower myself over the edge.

My heart is racing. I take a deep breath and try to remember what I was taught. My left hand on the rope in front of me. Keep it loose. It's only there for balance. My right hand is the brake. I control my speed with how tight I hold the rope. I loosen my grip and start to slide. I panic and grab the rope tight with both hands, causing me to stop suddenly and I begin to swing side to side. I put my feet against the side of the building and, with another deep breath, I slowly loosen my grip on the brake hand again. I begin to slide down the rope. Slow and steady.

Parker:

I can hear Alex on the balcony. I know she wants to talk to me. I don't want to talk to her. Not yet. I still need to think. I need to know why I do that. Strangers touching me, I get that. But I love Alex. I love it when she touches me. I expect that she's going to yell down to me. I don't sit up to look. But then she leaves. I don't want to talk but now I'm sad that she doesn't want to talk. She's mad at me. She probably hates me now.

I can hear her again. I cover my ears and close my eyes. All I can hear is the sound of my heartbeat and the thoughts in my head.

Alex:

I slowly lower myself until my feet reach the bar that Parker is hanging from. She put the bar on the side of the building just for this. She said it's more comfortable than hanging from the railing. She tried tying in her feet like a bungee jumper but a gust of wind blew her into the building, hurting her shoulder. This was her solution. I notice she's got an anchor bolted to the building as well. I start to wrap the tail of my rope around it.

I am amazed that no one has noticed Parker. You'd think that a woman dangling on the side of a skyscraper would attract some sort of attention. She hangs facing the park. She says it makes her calm to watch the children on the playground. Apparently no one ever looks up any more.

I take a second and squint at the playground. Without my glasses, it's just blurry shapes and colors. Still, just the fact that I'm hundreds of feet off the ground makes everything look brighter and better. More intense. I look down at Parker. She's got her eyes closed and her hands over her ears. There's no enjoying the view today. I want so badly to help her. I want to understand. I just don't.

With my ropes all tied in, I slowly sit on the bar and loop my feet like Parker does. I close my eyes and try to pretend I'm just on the monkey bars at my elementary school. I did this all the time. It's exactly the same thing. I keep telling myself that. As I lean back and lower myself, I feel the rope slip and I panic. I grab at the bar but miss. Parker finally open her eyes.

Parker:

I feel someone land on my bar. I can't believe Alex would even try something like this on her own. She doesn't even like looking over the rail let alone rappelling down by herself. I guess she remembered how to rig the rope. At least I hope she did. I can feel her hook her legs and let go. All of a sudden, she jerks the bar then grabs at it. She acts like she's falling but her legs are hooked and she's tied in. If she did it all right, she'll be fine. I open my eyes. It's no wonder she slipped. She forgot to lock the belaying device. I reach out to close it. My hand brushes against her chest. She flinches.

Alex:

Parker finally looks at me. I know I probably look terrified. I am terrified. At the same time, I can see the appeal. Everything is bigger, brighter. Even the breeze on my face feels more intense. I feel alive. I hate the upside down thing and I would be happier if Parker had put my gear together. Maybe I'll let Parker take me on more adventures.

Parker reaches out to touch me. She pushes down the lock on my gear. I forgot about that. As she pulls her hand back, she brushes it against my chest. I flinch. Her touch surprised me. It hurt. It felt like she punched me in the chest. I feel like I can't catch my breath. I don't understand.

Parker:

I think Alex must hate me. I touched her and she pulled away from me. She's never done that before. I thought she liked it when I touched her. Now I'm more confused. She wants to talk. She came down here to tell me what?

"Parker…I…" "Do you hate me Alex?" I ask. "What? No! Why would I hate you Parker?" I can't look at her. "You don't want me to touch you. Is it because of what happened?"

Alex:

Parker is talking. I'm still trying to figure out my feelings. What happened just now? She asks me if I hate her. I tell her no. "I love you Parker. I wouldn't be here if I didn't. I want you to know that I will do anything for you. That's why I'm here." "You don't want me to touch you" she says quietly. "Is it because of what happened?"

"What happened Parker?" "I don't know" she says. "I love you too. I just…sometimes when you touch me…I can't help it…" "It hurts?" She looks startled. "When you touched me Parker. Just now. It hurt. You didn't mean it to. You barely touched me. But it hurt. Is that how you feel? All the time?" She slowly nods.

"You feel it too?" she asks. "Yeah. I think I did. I think maybe because I'm scared? Or the adrenaline? Everything feels, I don't know, more." Parker nods again. "I think I understand Parker. Finally. I always knew you experienced the world differently but I never understood. I do now. Things are more intense for you. If you're not expecting it, it can be too much. I'll be more careful from now on OK? But you need to know that I do understand. And if you don't like my touch…" She interrupts me. "I love your touches Alex. I really do. I don't want to be that way. Not anymore." "I know Sweetie. I know. I'll be more careful. And you don't worry so much. OK?" She smiles. "OK."

Parker:

Alex still loves me. That's all I really care about.

Alex: "Now can we get down off of this fucking building, before I wet myself again?" Please?"


End file.
